304 pages ; 21 cm

Merry pranksters -- or sadistic bullies? Welcome to a place where anonymity rules. Often called the "Anti-Facebook," the Web community at 4chan.org spawned Anonymous, the hactivist collective notorious for its recent cyberattacks against WikiLeaks censors. Created in 2003 by 15-year-old Christopher Poole, 4chan is also the creative force behind "the Web's most infectious memes and catchphrases" (Wired). Today this primordial soup of the Web receives over 12 million monthly hits, with enormous -- yet largely undetected -- social influence to match. Epic Win for Anonymous is the first book to tell the story of 4chan and the genesis of the rogue antisecurity groups -- including LulzSec, AntiSec and SwagSec -- currently changing our world. Longtime blogger and Web culture critic Cole Stryker traces their growing importance to mainstream news, community activism, and new creative media. Whether chronicling how Sarah Palin's personal email account was hacked, illuminating the history of the forums that inspired 4chan and Anonymous, or explaining the threat of cyber-bullying, Stryker's engrossing and approachable Epic Win for Anonymous proves the transformative cultural impact of the Internet and the communities it sustains.--dust jacket

Includes bibliographical references (pages 286-296) and index

Memes: shared nuggets of cultural currency -- Discovering 4chan -- 4chan in a day -- Tracing 4chan ancestry -- The rise of 4chan -- The meme industry -- The meme life cycle -- Merry pranksters, freedom fighters, or sadistic bullies? -- The anti-social network

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